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Russia's Artyom Dzyuba, center, celebrates after scoring his side's third goal during the group A match between Russia and Saudi Arabia which opens the 2018 soccer World Cup at the Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, June 14, 2018.

What to Know

Russia, ranked 70, and Saudi Arabia, ranked 67, are the two lowest ranked teams in the 2018 World Cup.

A host nation has never lost a World Cup opening game.

This is Saudi Arabia's first World Cup since 2006.

Denis Cheryshev scored twice as Russia swept aside Saudi Arabia to open its home World Cup with a 5-0 win on Thursday.

After a lavish opening ceremony and with President Vladimir Putin watching on, Yuri Gazinsky put Russia ahead with a header off Alexander Golovin's cross in the 12th minute.

Substitute Cheryshev chipped the ball over two Saudi defenders in the 43rd and then fired it high to goalkeeper Abdullah Al Muaiouf's right.

Artyom Dzyuba made an instant impact off the bench to make it 3-0 in the 71st with a header off Golovin's cross. In stoppage time, Cheryshev chipped the ball in for Russia's fourth goal in stoppage time and Golovin scored from a free kick.

Pizzi won the 2016 Copa America title with Chile using an all-action style with constant pressure on the opposition.

Cherchesov favors a more defensive approach. Cherchesov, known for his prickly demeanor in interviews, responded to questions about what he'd say to Russian fans who are nervous about their team's poor form by saying he's "no psychologist, to go around calming people down."

Meerkats at the Drayton Manor Zoo in England gave their predictions for the 2018 World Cup matches for Russia v. Saudi Arabia and England v. Tunisia.

(Published Tuesday, June 12, 2018)

That forced Cherchesov into some late shake-ups. Cherchesov abandoned his usual three-man backline with wing-backs in favor of a four-man defense against Austria last month, but Russia lost 1-0 and failed to register a shot on target.

VINTAGEThe average age of players in the Russia and Saudi Arabia squads is almost 29 — among the oldest in the tournament — and each boasts a pair of players with more than 100 international appearances.